April 2019 Newsletter

Ready for the official Weekend at the Cottage wake-up call to action? I’m not joking, the countdown is on – less than fifty days until the official start of the 2019 cottage season.

Whether you’re hosting friends or your treasured “VIP weekend guests”, we promise to inspire you with creative recipes, drinks, tips and stories sure to make every single day especially fun and memorable.

As we head into the beauty of the season, a note on kindness: be kind to the environment – tread softly, reuse and keep it clean. Be kind to others – travel safely, enjoy responsibly, do unto others and look to them with kind regard. Lastly, be kind to yourself – try not to get stressed, ask others to help when you need it, and participate! Do the things that bring you the greatest joy and make time for YOU.

In case you missed it… we just kicked STRESS off the island and booted it from everyone’s guest list. Time to just chillax!

Lots of stuff in the works as we prepare to welcome longer nights and warmer days. Here’s what’s coming:

FACEBOOK LIVE

We’ll be doing our next FACEBOOK LIVE from Carol’s place on Monday, April 22 at noon EDT. I’ll be sharing a quick side dish recipe with spring vegetables that goes with everything. Please mark the date and tune in.

I also have something else I need to do that day – pick up an insanely huge box containing a remarkably amazing “something special” that we’ll be giving away as the big prize for our SUMMER CONTEST GIVEAWAY. We’ll be announcing the contest details on May, 15 at noon EDT. Make sure to LIKE and FOLLOW our Facebook page so you don’t miss any updates.

THE EAT GOES ON

Thanks to everyone for trying and liking our latest round of recipes. We’re so happy you enjoyed them as much as we liked presenting them. No surprise the CHOCOLATE CELEBRATION CAKE was such a hit, with its decadently delicious flavour and straightforward preparation. The second part of that story was the two ingredient CHOCOLATE CRACK SAUCE that goes so well with it – YUM! We’re also still getting notes about our really flavourful STEAMED MUSSELS served with ROASTED GARLIC CHEESE BREAD and are so proud of the way our SPICED ZUCCHINI BREAD is being made and loved. Click those links if you’re hungry!

COMING SOON

We have some equally exciting things coming your way over the next month too. Stay tuned for AVGOLEMONO SOUP, a traditional Greek soup made with chicken, lemon and egg. I’m thinking many of you will follow our lead and fall in love with our easy HAZELNUT TIRAMISU or our kid-approved ZUCCHINI BOATS. Last thing is a gorgeous PERSIAN LIME PIE that is so refreshing you’re gonna wanna make two to deal with all of the requests for second helpings.

HELLO OTTAWA! BONJOUR MONTREAL!

I’ll be heading to ROGERS DAYTIME OTTAWA on Monday, April 29, then to BREAKFAST TELEVISION MONTREAL on Tuesday, April 30. These appearances are the first of many where I’ll be sharing ideas for SUMMER ENTERTAINING. Please check local listings for showtimes and also keep an eye out for our May newsletter with details on other Ontario appearances.

SPREAD THE EXCITEMENT!

Don’t forget we’re all about being social. Post a comment, send a message and look for us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. We’d also love to hear about any requests you might have for upcoming posts, so e-mail us your story suggestions.

Oh, I almost forgot – tempus fugit! We added a cool feature to our landing page. Click HERE to be redirected to the main page then, look up towards the right-hand corner. See it? Ready – commence countdown!

WISH ME LUCK!

In just a few short days, I’ll be packing up the car and heading up north to open the cottage for the season (yippee!). Just the thought gets my pulse racing, but I’ve learned to temper my enthusiasm with the reality of what’s ahead; you just never know what you’ll find when you get there.

Some of the “surprises” I’ve encountered in the past – fallen trees, a damaged roof and that time the chimney was blown right off the cottage! I’ve also had uninvited guests drop in for a visit, like last year when I walked in to find a red squirrel camping out in my living room. Hilarious… we both went a bit squirrelly!

For me, the big hope is that the car makes it down the road to the cottage. It can be a bit dicey with all the melting snow and mud. Trust me, there’s nothing worse than having to carry everything down to the cottage by hand, in twelve trips. Please send me your positive vibes!

For those of you interested in watching my progress from afar, please FOLLOW our INSTAGRAM PAGE. I’ll be posting pics and stories as I settle in.

Here’s to making those summer dreams of good times a reality! Who’s in?